Cheapest usable microscope? A review.

Basic facts

  • Name of microscope: Telmu XSP-75
  • Cost: EUR 79.99 USD 89.99
  • Objectives: 4x, 10x, 40x
  • Condenser: no
  • Eyepieces: 10x, 25x

What I liked about the microscope

  • Overall good build quality.
  • Low cost
  • Coarse and fine focus knob (most micrscopes in that price range have only one focus knob)
  • mobile phone adapter is solid (but can not be used to full potential in this case, see below)

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TELMU Microscope 40X-1000X Magnification Eyepiece(WF10X/25X) Dual Illumination Handheld Lab Compound Monocular Microscopes with 10 Sliders


What I did not like so much

The 10x eyepiece has a very small eye relief and therefore you have to go very close to the eyepiece to see an image. This is also a problem for the mobile phone adapter, which requires an eyepeice with a longer eye relief so that one can get a full image.

This is where they saved costs: You have to cut down costs somewhere for this price.

  • No 160 mm DIN optics
  • No condenser
  • No mechanical stage
  • No external power supply
  • Optical quality of the 40x is noticeable lower than of better microscopes.

This is what they added, what I consider unnecessary:

  • The colored filtered ring, which does not do much.
  • They should have included a better 10x eyepiece instead of a second 25x eyepiece.